


Bonded Souls

by cornerandchair



Category: What's the Frequency? (Podcast)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2017-10-22
Packaged: 2019-01-21 13:31:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12458793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cornerandchair/pseuds/cornerandchair
Summary: Walter worked alone, until the day he let a young girl into his home and office.And then he had Whitney, who had followed him like a stray cat.His closest friend and work partner. His bonded soul.





	Bonded Souls

“Mix.” His police contact pulled his collar up just enough to hide his face. “You’ve got a shadow, you know that, right?”

“Hm?” Walter quickly glanced over his shoulder, spying the small skin and bones girl that had been following him since the botched theft. “Oh, her? She’s just a little…” He trailed off. “Don’t mind her. She hasn’t caused me any trouble yet. In fact, she saved my skin not too long ago.”

He raised an eyebrow, “Being protected by a child?”

He snorted. “Please, it’s not as though she’s my bodyguard. Have a little faith in me, would you?”

“Alright, let’s just get this over with.”

Walter passed along the information his contact had asked him to get. The two weren’t friends, not yet. But Walter knew very well when to make good connections and with whom to make them. This man would make a good friend.

He pulled his jacket tight around himself and made his way back to his office and home. He leaves the door unlocked, just long enough for him to grab his discarded lunch bits- half of a very soggy sandwich and an unopened water bottle- and place them just outside the door on a plate.

His reason for attempting to befriend a detective was more or less the same reason he hadn’t chased that girl away for good. She was a bit like a stray cat. He didn’t intend to treat her as such. But she never got too close. If times were different he might’ve taken her in as a protegee. She had all the trappings of a good Private eye and she couldn’t be more than… what? Ten? Perhaps less than that.

That and Walter was beginning to get used to her tailing him.

He shut and locked the door this time. In about half an hour he’d check outside again, and find the plate cleaned with a little bead or some other rather worthless bauble left in the sandwich’s place. He thought it was cute that she felt the need to repay him.

Today ended up being slightly different. He’d barely poured a glass of bourbon to ease the problems of the day when a knock interrupted him. He set down the half poured glass and made his way to the door.

The knock was soft, but persistent. Too low on the door to be an adult. That left the girl.

“What could she want?” He muttered as he undid the lock and pulled the door open.

There was the girl. Not quite shy, but she’s much closer than she’d ever been to him since the attempted theft.

She sniffed, and held up the plate. “Th… Thank you.”

This was… unexpected. “You’re welcome, little girl.” He gave a quick cursory glance around the street to make sure she wasn’t hiding any… unruly fellow pickpockets. “Do you want to come in?”

She glanced around what she could see of his apartment. She was doing her own checks, he knew she was smart. She sniffed, rubbing her nose on the sleeve of her dirty shirt, and then she nodded.

Walter stepped aside and allowed this stray cat of a child into his home.

A little voice in the back of his head warned him that she’d never leave now. He’d accidentally… adopted(?) this young child now. Perhaps she’d done the same to him, in a way. She’d been following him long enough, after all.

He shut the door behind her. “Do you have a name, girl?”

She turned and almost petulantly stared up at Walter. “Who doesn’t have a _name?_ ”

He whistled. “Your bark is almost as bad as your bite!” Walter chuckled to himself as he took the plate from her.

She rubbed her nose on her sleeve again. “M’ name’s Whitney.”

“Pleasure to meet you properly, Whitney.” He went to the sink and dropped it in. “My name is Walter Mix. But I’m sure you already know that with how closely you’ve been following me.” He turned around.

Whitney was chewing the edge of her sleeve now. “... You knew?” Her voice was soft, and he knew full well she knew he’d been on to her.

“Of course. I’m a detective.”

“You don’t look like a flatfoot.”

“Quite right, Whitney. Quite right. I’m a _private_ detective.” He pushed off the kitchen counter and began rummaging in drawers.

“Is that why you take money from people to follow other people?”

He briefly glanced over his shoulder at her. “Is that all it looks like I do?”

She chose not to respond.

He went back to rummaging. “And what about you? Have you been taking money from people to follow me?”

Silence…

“Oh, no! I would never.” Another loud sniff. “Mr… Mix?”

“Yes?” He draped a sleepshirt over his arm and began searching another drawer.

“Why do you talk like that?”

“Like what?”

“Your… voice is funny, ‘s all.”

He paused, “My accent?”

“... Yes?” She was right behind him now.

Children… always so full of questions. “My voice is funny because I’m not from here. Surely you must’ve heard a British accent before.” He pulled a few other things and walked towards the bathroom.

She didn’t answer.

“I’d guess you have, but you never had a chance to ask anyone before.” Walter put his night clothes on the sink and the towel near the shower.

He turned to her. “I’m going to take a shower. You’re welcome to leave or stay. You should be able to fit on the chair if you want to sleep.”

Whitney looked back. She slowly backed out of the bathroom and shut the door after her.

After a nice long shower Walter wasn’t quite sure if the girl would still be out there. He wasn’t sure if he wanted her to be.

Either way, he finished toweling off his hair as he left, and saw the tiny ragamuffin curled into herself on the chair.

He sighed. “You’ve done it now, Walter…” Was he ready to be a father? Would she even want him as a father? He’d never been parent material, really. But now he had this girl…

“She can take care of herself, though.” He reasoned aloud as he grabbed an extra blanket and placed it over her. “She’s done well enough so far, Walter. She doesn’t need a father… what she needs… is a friend!”

He laughed to himself as he went to his own bed to do some light reading before he slept.

Whitney became a regular fixture around Walter’s home and office from that point on. She picked up tools of the trade very quickly, acting as a shadow to people he couldn’t follow without being too suspicious. Her strength was nothing to scoff at either; her form could use some work but she seemed to hold a natural aptitude for going on the offensive.

They worked together for years. They became bonded souls, as Walter would tell people. Just two people that survived together, while making a little money by sticking their noses where they probably didn’t belong.

Whitney shared everything with Walter.  
Walter shared a little less than everything with Whitney.

Not that she didn’t somehow find out anyway…

Still, she watched his back and he watched hers.

Not that he really had to worry too much about her. He still remembered the first and only time she attempted to date someone.

“How’d it go?” Walter asked, as he poured himself a bourbon.

“Poorly.” She slumped into the chair across from him. “I really don’t think this… dating thing is for me. Or maybe not with boys, anyway.” Whitney rested her chin in the palm of her hand. Her sullen look was a little unnerving.

“Well?” Walter waved a hand for her to continue, “Don’t keep me waiting, share the details!” He started drinking.

“It was fine, I suppose…” She sighed, “And then he got a bit too handsy, so I broke his arm.”

The usually smooth bourbon got caught in his throat.

“He started crying like a baby and ran away calling me a crazy broad.”

He coughed, trying to clear his airways of alcohol. “That’s- That’s quite the bad date, Whit.” He covered his mouth and set the glass down. “Sorry to hear you wasted your afternoon.”

She shrugged. “At least I got a free banana split out of the deal.”

They were quite the pair really. And Walter wouldn’t trade Whitney for anything in the world.

Because they were two bonded souls. Destined to help each other until the end of eternity.

**Author's Note:**

> This is entirely built from headcanons because James keeps passing on in-depth questions I ask XD
> 
> Also I'm pleased to say this has the approval of THE Karim Kronfli AKA Walter "Troubles" Mix!


End file.
